The four travelers stopped for a moment as they prepared to enter the forest. They tried to see beyond the gnarled trees, but the inside of the forest seemed to be swallowed completely by blackness. Fiyero sighed forlornly as he stood at the edge of the trees. The last time he'd been here he'd been with Elphaba. They'd spent a wonderful night together before Elphaba had suddenly run off to try and save her sister from a flying house. A task at which, by the way, she had not succeeded.

Now, however; that night seemed to be in the distant past, and the only thing Fiyero saw when he looked at the forest was the risky task he had ahead of him once night fell. He hoped with all his might he could pull it off. He had to see Elphaba again; he was worried out of his mind and he missed her terribly. Briefly he wondered is she missed him as well, and it took him a few moments to remember that she believed he was dead.

Boq took the lead as the group finally entered the forest, and Fiyero noted that it seemed creepier than the last time he'd been here. It looked a bit more ominous somehow. Fiyero reasoned that this was probably just because the other three around him were shivering uncontrollably and jumping at the slightest sound. It was making him terribly nervous.

They walked for a long time, until the forest seemed to blend together in a blur of darkness, trees, and moss. None of the travelers made a sound as they walked, each one too afraid to break the silence. The only sounds they heard as they continued on were those of leaves rustling overhead and twigs snapping underfoot. This only served to make the four of them even jumpier, but they pressed on anyway, never looking back. After a while, they came upon a makeshift sign, which was poking out of the ground at an odd angle.

Dorothy crouched down on front of the sign and read, "Witch's castle one mile, I'd turn back if I were you"

Fiyero gaped openmouthed as Dorothy read the sign aloud. Had Elphaba completely lost her mind? No wonder Boq had known where to find the castle, Elphaba was practically advertising it! Didn't she know how important it was that she stay hidden? Did she simply not care anymore? Whatever the reason, Fiyero knew he had to get that sign out of there.

As the other three moved ahead, he pulled a handful of straw out of his chest and tossed it aside. Then, pretending to fall, he threw himself on the ground next to it. As the others turned around, looking concerned, he simply said, "Be right there"

Upon realizing that Fiyero was alright the others turned and continued walking forward, knowing that Fiyero would catch up as soon as he got himself together. When he was sure they weren't going to notice, he quickly yanked the sign out of the ground. In one swift motion he swung the sign into a tree trunk, and it shattered into dozens of tiny pieces upon contact. Satisfied that he'd at least gotten rid of one danger to Elphaba's safety, Fieryo quickly re-stuffed himself and hurried off to catch up with the others.

They walked on for a few more minutes, before suddenly the eerie silence of the forest was pierced by several loud shrieks from overhead. The four travelers searched around for the source of the noise, and when they looked up they were met by the sight of an entire flock of Flying Monkeys. Their strange crimson wings beat against the sky unnaturally, giving them a ghostly appearance against the now darkening sky. Fiyero recognized them as the Monkeys that Elphaba had forced the Wizard to release from captivity. He supposed she had them working on her side now.

They Monkeys swooped down upon the four before any of them could react, their strange forms blotting out the sky as they descended. The others tried to fight them off, but to no avail; they were severely outnumbered. Boq swung his axe wildly in an attempt to hit some of them, but the monkeys were too swift. One of them seized the axe with its tail, and flung it backwards, where it stuck into the trunk of a tree. Fiyero tried to retreat, but he didn't get far before several of the monkeys tackled him and tore him apart, scattering his straw across the forest floor. The Lion was not really doing much to help, and had sought refuge under a strange looking bush, where he was now cowering with his paws over his head.

Then, as quickly as they had come, the monkeys took flight once more and soon their forms became specks in the night sky. For a moment Fiyero thought that they were safe, before he realized that something was terribly wrong: Dorothy was missing. The monkeys had taken her. Fiyero cursed. Couldn't Elphaba have waited until tomorrow to send her monkeys out? This completely ruined his plan. There was no way Boq and the Lion would stop to rest now, for they'd be too intent on rushing to save Dorothy. There was only one thing Fiyero could do now He had to rush ahead and get to Elphaba first. It was the only way to save her. The only problem was that he was still scattered across the forest in several pieces.

Boq was a short distance away, tugging on his axe as he tried to dislodge it from the tree it had been stuck in. It finally came out with a soft 'pop' and Boq was sent staggering backwards. After he regained his balance he turned to Fiyero, "What happened to you?"

"Don't worry about it," said Fiyero urgently, "Just help put me back together. Quickly, we haven't got much time!"

Not wasting a second, Boq and the lion, who seemed to have regained his composure after the Monkeys' departure, obediently began to collect bits of Fiyero from around the area. It took several minutes to locate all of the straw, and then Boq began to reassemble him. Fiyero decided that having another man put him back together was easily the most awkward and embarrassing situation he had ever experienced. However, he did not dwell on the matter for long. As soon as he was reassembled, Fiyero turned and began sprinting toward Kiamo Ko.

Boq called after him, but he did not slow his pace or turn around. He had to reach Elphaba before the others, and that meant he needed a head start. Boq and the Lion would not be suspicious, they'd probably assumed he was just in a rush to rescue Dorothy. They didn't know how wrong they were. Though he did not want to see the little girl get hurt, she was most definitely not his main concern at the moment.

Boq and the Lion took off after him, but after a short while Fiyero could hear the clanking of Boq's tin joints growing fainter. He supposed Boq had stayed behind to keep the same pace as the Lion, who would most likely be getting out of breath. Happy for this stroke of luck, Fiyero kept sprinting for all he was worth, and he arrived at Kiamo Ko in a matter of minutes.

The familiar castle loomed over him, not looking frightening at all, despite the rather ominous back drop of the forest and the night sky. Though Fiyero's family had never actually lived in this castle, they had stayed here whenever they visited the Emerald City, as this castle was much closer to the city than their home in the Vinkus. During these visits Fiyero had often spent his time exploring, and he'd found many interesting passageways within the old stone walls of the castle. The old building seemed like a sort of home away from home for him.

It was also because of those visits that he knew there was a secret entrance in the back. It was well hidden, and Fiyero was fairly sure that Elphaba would not have found out about it. This meant that there would be no guards stationed there, and Fiyero could easily use the passage to slip inside unnoticed.

Moving around to the back of the building, Fiyero searched the stretch of stone wall until he found what he was looking for. To the ignorant eye it would appear as though nothing was out of place here, but Fiyero knew better. Placing his cloth fingers into a crack between two of the stones, he pulled and lifted away a large section of the wall, revealing a narrow passageway. Fiyero would just be able to squeeze through if he crawled on his hands and knees. He entered the tunnel carefully and pulled the stones back into place behind him so that none of the guards would realize he was there.

The passage was not too long, but it was narrow, and Fiyero was pretty sure he would not have been able to squeeze through if not for the fact that his straw filled body could bend as such strange angles. The passage led to a trap door in the castle's foyer, and Fiyero checked for guards before he stepped out. Luckily the room was deserted, and so he slipped out of the passage quietly and shut the door softly behind him.

Looking around, he tried to decide where to go from here. Thinking for a moment, he decided that Elphaba was probably staying in the north tower. It was the highest tower in the building, and he knew that this would appeal to Elphaba. It was also the most spacious, and that meant she would have more room to place her things. Yes, he was fairly certain that he would find Elphaba there.

Moving into the center of the room, Fiyero checked for guards once more before pressing himself against the wall. He poked his head out into the hall way, but pulled it back in quickly as he realized there was a guard passing by. Hoping against hope that he hadn't been spotted, Fiyero melted into the shadows and pressed himself up against the wall once more. Only once the guard walked passed without stopping did Fiyero breathe a metaphorical sigh of relief.

Now that the hallway was deserted once more, Fiyero slipped out into it, taking great care to stay close to the wall in case he needed to hide in the shadows once more. However, he luckily encountered no more guards as he made his way up the tower at the top of the building. Finally he reached the top of the last staircase, and he now stood in front of the door that led into the north tower bedroom. This was it. He was almost certain he would be facing Elphaba when he pushed open those doors.

Fiyero took a moment to collect himself, knowing full well that this meeting could turn out to be a disaster. He had to be very careful about how he made his entrance, and he had to be sure to choose his words carefully. He could not startle or anger Elphaba, or he might find himself spontaneously combusting before he had a chance to explain himself. Finally, when he was ready, he placed a burlap hand on the handle, and pushed the heavy door open.

Ooooh, cliff hanger. :P

Thanks for reading.

S.P.